Gear-shiftng mechanism.



s, A. WALRAIH.

GEAR SHIFTING MECHANISM. APPL ICA T10N FILED ocT.r12.1914.

$3,436. l Pammmsept. 4,1917.

l 4 SHEETS-SHEET I.

@theme/n B. A. WALRTH.

GEAR SHIFTING MECHANISM. APPLICATIon FILED ocT. 12.?914.

1,239,436,4 mama Sept, 4,1917,

SHEETS-SHEET 2.

B. A. WALRATH. l GEAR SHIFTING MECHANISM. PPLICATION FILED OCT 12| |914.

3.289.@36. Patendsept. 4,191?.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

Snom/Lto@ B. A. WALRATH. GEAR SHIFTINYG MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED ocT. l2. |914.

l .Q mentedsept. ,4, 1917.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

Jal/renza HA MZHATH XM 95m@ www il: v1

IiUR'I'ON A. WALK/ATH, im' 333436K WTELLEY, ICVWAQ Gesa-sensore' Meerssen-asiat.

Application filed October 12, Mina is a speeiication.

The present: invention reetes to means for controlling the power transmission of me tondri ven vehicles.

in the structure presented in my eopending appiicaion, Serial Number 824,456, iied March 13, ll? Cam and yoke mechanism7 actuated bv' the dutch-controlling Ineens5 is -emploved "so shift the change-gears into ami, ouiof operai/ive reieision with the main shaft. The cams and yokes disclosed, however; are of eoinparerively great- Weighil and size; and, owing; so the particular types of earns and yoies enipioyed, eonsiderahe power is lost eine 'to 'rietion.

The primary olbiee', therefore, of the pre@ enrY invention, is the improvement o ehe generai eonstrncion presented in the eeneurrent application.

A 'uri'her object of the invention is the construction of an improved meehanieai gearshiftingdevice, which may be conven iently mounted upon the usuaitransrnission cese. i

fr stili further object is the production o a device of this dass, wherein the Weight, size and, Cost of proenction and installation are reduced to the minimum.

y Furthermore, the invention eontempiates el novel foot-lever control. Which aetnaies )th the shifting mechanism and the ointchf ever shaft. Mihough the shifting mechai nisrn may in some cases be operated directiva *5f-rein the nsna ciu'zch-iever, in many cases *his ifnpractioebie, es when ille stroke oi' the eintehlever is insufiioien for controi o the gear-shifting members. The controi wi'xieh empiojv, however, is soV designed es io permit of a long stroke of the oo'biever, 1the {irst siighe movement of which with dran and heide the clutch in disengagemeer` Whie the stroke is completed to shift the gears. i

The invention consisting or' the construe-- tion, eomoinaon ami novel arrangement or? parte, will be fully understoo from the roi mving desoripion; reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this application? and in which 'iik-e Specification of :Leiters eezet.

Patented ei,

eeiraeers referenee inieete corresponding peres ifiirongnon'l; the severe views, of which-m Figure l. a ifraginenary side eievetion an anionnihiie-chassis, eqnppe with the device of niv invention; Fign 2 is plan of the saine; r is an eniarges elevation of the eiser-shifting members, the sides and botthe ease being taken in section upon iines, 3 and respeeiveiy of Fig. 1L, and ine fr '-ease being shown in part; Fie'.

a h Y mta section of the' saine taken upon ehe line i oi 3, che cem-shaft beg broken ofi at one end; Fig. 5 is a peril, tive view ihe seieetor and quadrant; 6 is i'rragri'nenaary iongitudinei serion or t3.. e selector iever; 2' is a front elevation o. Ehe frohes, earns, and change- ;gears, ifa-e aiter being shown in section; Fi. from elevation othe ooolever and iemhers associa 'l herewith; Fig. 9 is a SiderT #Lion me saine; Fig. 1,0 is a veriii-cal sew/io oi' the earn-shaft swivel an@` parte aesl` fierevvieh; Fig. 11 is a pen speetiv' or 'die earn-shaft; and Fig. 12 is a similar View oi a, inoc'iiicaiion of the yenesa Y i f .,5., new to 4:ine illustrations 13 regir-r nts he side members of the chassis Ii intermediate cross-ineinzhrfa) crossonemlrers,Y -15` is usual 'transmission ease, 16. in-

t 1' lhe chang eers 17, (Fig. 3), each slniahijy f' poil the courrier shaft, 18,

and Inova tions on opao site sides of neutral as by radial shii'in rinse i and 2@ siidebivmounted upon inn-:diei guide shafts, 21. The steering; eoiumn is represented at Q2 and the eiu1ehisivfer shaft i; 23.

The fragment rfv structure above-dene i tion iviijn Jhe inaii'i-shas; and 'that similar movements of the armed collar, 20, actuate 'die intermediario emi high gears.

The geaeshi''ting meehenisin may oe supper-tee any suiteioie manner, but preferahiy ineiosef by :i rectangular box having a bottoni, 24, ifronwta rear and side Walls,

25 and a top, 26. In the present embodiment this case is mounted upon the gear-box and is secured thereto by cap-screws, 27.

2S is shaft journaled for rotation and i longitudinalV movement in bearings, 29, formed integrally with the side walls of the case. Upon the said shaft is mounted a crank-arm, 30, outside the case and connected by a rod, 31, with a lever arm, 32, depending` from a hub, 33, formed integrally with a footelever, A34, and mounted upon a short shaft 35, carried by a bracket, 36, mounted upon the chassis. The said hub is formed with a cam, 37, adapted to engage the inelined end of a short lever, 38, secured to the clutch-lever-shaft and which supplants the usual clutch-lever. The forward end of the connecting-rod 31 is provided with a longitudinal slot, inclosing the wrist-pin 39 o of the leverarm 32.

' By virtue of this construction when the foot-lever is depressed the cam 37 will coact with the clutch-lever 38 to withdraw the clutch and hold the same disengaged while the stroke of the foot-lever is continued to actuate the gear-shifting members.

A spriilgjl, secured to the foot-lever and ymain fraroe serves to retract the former -when released. The shaft, 28, is retracted ,30 by a spring, il, secured at one end to an ear,

42, mounted on the case, and at the opposite end to the connecting-rod 3l. lThe crank 30 is provided with a stop stud, i8, which normally engages a bracket, 44, mounted upon 35,' the side of the case and having a lug l5 engaging an annular groove 4G in thehub of the crank, whereby displacementof the latter is prevented. The shaft 28 is movable longitudinally through the crank upon a key or feather, 47.

lVithin the ease is an elongated plate, 48, movable transversely to the shaft 28, and having its end portions reduced and slidably protruding through hearings, e9, mounted on '45 opposite sides of the case.

The shaft Q8 is encircled by a swivel I`collar, 50, in opposite sides of which are setscrews, 5l, which freely engage an annular groove, 52, in the shaft,' (Fig. l0.) The 5g swivel is formed with a llat base which rests upon the selector-plate, i8, and is provided..

with a depending,r lug, 53, inclosed hy a diagonal slot in the selector-plate. whereby movementof thc latter imparts longitudinal movement to the shaft. The said slo t, as

i nin v former application. preferalily:corisists of a series of short slots, 5l, disposed laterally to the shaft and aliued diagonally thereto, each of said slots communicating with its neighbor by a diagonal slot, The forward end of the selector-plate is connected by a rod 56, with one. end of a lever 57, fulcrumed upon a bracket, 5S. mounted upon the chassis. The opposite end of said lever is connected by a rod 59 20, respectively.

with a crank-arm 60, carried upon the lower end of a shaft, 6l, mounted parallel with the steering column and free to turn within the hub of a quadrant, 62, secured by a band, 63, or otherwise, upon the steering-post. The shaft 61 is provided with a handlever, 64, having a paWl, 65, adapted to yieldably engage the quadrant notches, labeled, R, N, L, I, and H, which characters represent the respective speed ratios. The shaft Q8 carries cams, 66, 67, 68 and 69, preferably all cast integrally with a common hub, 70, and normally inclined at an angle of about 45 degrees. Said cams are generally oblong in side elevation and have diagonally-opposite corners formed with shoulders affording oppositely faced radial edges, 71, substantially vertically disposed, respecting the normal position'of the cams.

The first three of the above-mentioned 35 cams act to place the gears innentral, while the cam 69, positioned intermediate cams 67 and 68, serves to shift the gears to operative positions. The shifting cam may be identical with its companions but its corners opposite from the shoulders 71 are formed with lugs, 72, the inner edges of which are radially disposed and spaced from the shoulders 7l not less than .the distance the gears are shifted between neutral and operative positions. The presence of the shoulders, 71, upon the shifting cam, however, is arbitrary, as will presently appear.

t The cam-shaft is centrally inclosed by yokes 73 and 73", mounted side by side to move laterally to the cam-shaft between suitable guides, as the studs 74 on the bottom 24 of the case.` From the yokes'depend center-bolts, 75, free to move within slots,V

7 (Fig. 3), in the bottom of the case; and 105 engaged with the gear-shifting arms, 19 and The arms of the yokes are each formed with a plurality of blocks, the blocks of each arm being in horizontal alinement and oppositely disposed to those of the opposite arm. The inner sides of the blocks are each formed with two steps, 77 and T8. successively arranged and oppositely faced to those of the opposite side .of the yoke. The faces of the steps 77 are aliijied vertically and normally are in alinelnent with the axis of the cam-shaft. 'l`he'shlfting-cam 69 coaz-ts with the shoulders 7T; and the neutrahzi-n(r calns with the shoulders, 78. The

lblocks of each arm are arranfed in s aced relation and those with which theshiftinmcam cooperates are otl'set with respect to their companions on the opposite arm of the yoke, which permits engagement with one and passage of the other.

Referring. now, more particularly to Fig. 4, the lower arm of the yoke 73 has. adjacent its outer edge one of these blocks 79 and au' intermediate block Sl; and the upper arm is provided with an inner block 82 .and a comparatively' Wider block 80, directly opposite the block 79 and the space intermediate the latter and the block 81.

The yokes may be identical in design, exceptingthat the blocks4 of the yoke 73a are transposed; that is, the blocks 8O and 82 are located adjacent the outer andinner edges respectively of the lower arm, and the blocks 79 and 81 are respectively positioned adjacent the outer edge and theY intermediate portion of the companion arm. In the embodiment chosen orillustration the spaces' between the blocks of the yoke 73 are equal; but in the other yoke the space intermediate theblocks 80 and 82 is twice that of the others. This arrangement permits the shiftd ing-cam, in neutral position, to pass the blocks 81 and 82. If the spaces were all equal and the shifting-cam Were positioned between the yolres when it is adjusted to `shift the gears to neutral position, anundesirable arrangement of the selector quadrant would result, inasmuch as the neutral indication would fall between L and Fig. 4 shows the cam-shaft in position to4 shift the gears, to neutral. As the selector lever is moved to indicate reverse, the selector-slate, 48 `will loev drawn forwardly and co-act with the swivel'O in sliding the cam-shaft to aline the shifting-cam 69 with the bioclrl of yoke 73, and the cam 68 .will register with bloclrs 80 and 81 of thecompanion yoke. As the vfoot-lever.' 34 is depressed, the irst movement causes the `cam 3'? to actuate the arm 38 and thus disengage the engine clutch. During this portion of the path ci movement of the lever, the gearshiiiting mechanism is not actuated because of the 'lost-motion connection between these parte.

Further movement of the lever 34 operates to rotate the shaft 28 and the cam mechanism. lf either of the movable gear Wheels 17 is in a shifted position, it willI return to neutral position either by the neutralizing cam 88 or by the shifting cam 69 as it shifts the yol e 73 forwardly .to actuate the arm 19 and the corresponding gear wheel 17 into operative position for reversing the direction of drive.- v

When the operator releases the lever 34, the spring 41 returns the shaft 28 to its normal position with the stop 43 in engagement with the bracket 44. The spring 40 returns the lever 34 to its inoperative positiom Thus, in selecting low gear, the selector-- lever is moved to L and the shifting-cam thereby alincd with the block 82 to shift the `same yoke in the opposite direction.

rThe other ratios are chosen in the other voire in like manner, the shifting-cam engaging the blocks 82 and 81 in shifting to intermediate and high gears, respectively.

Obviously, the number of yolrcs and cams .ing a side portion that is provided iv may he altered to accommodate any number of speeds with which a car may be provided. I

Having thus described my inventi what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is,--

1. In a gear-shifting mechanism, the coin-- bination with a pair of shiftable gear "wheels and a pair of movable members connected thereto, each oii said movable members havplurality of cam faces, of a longitndii Mlly movable element having a series of cam portionsv for coacting With said cam llaces 'to shift the one or the other of said gear wheels according to the longitudinal position oi? said element.

2. In a gear-shifting mechanism, the com-- bination With a pair of shiftable gear Wheels and a pair of movable members connected. thereto, each of said movable meml'zers having a side portion that is provided with a plurality of substantially parallel. cam lia-ces offset from each other, of a rod having" plurality of cam portions of varying radii for coasting with said. cam faces to shift ,.the one or the other of said gear Wheels.

3. In a gear-shifting mechanism, the com bination with a pair of shiftahle ir Wheels, and a pair of members of appnmimately U--shape connected to `said gear Wheels, each of said members being pro vided with a plurality of cam surfaces upon each side portion, of an element movable transversely to said members having coacting cam surfaces for returning a shifted gear Wheel to its vneutral position and to shift one of the gear Wheels to an operative position upon a continuous movement said element.

4. In gear-shifting mechanism, the combination with transmission mechanism having a plurality of gear-shiftingelements, each movable between neutral and operative positions on'opposite sides ofneutral," oit a rock-shaft, radial arms of varying lengths carried thereby and each cxtendingon opposite sides of the rock4 shaft. members movable in opposite directions the .rock-shaft and to positions co1, ond-- ing to said neutral and operative positions for the control of said elements, each said members embodying` internennecA companionbars, disposed on opposite sides of the rock shaft and longitudinally to their direction of travel, and a plurality ot projections on the adjacent sides of each car and each arranged oppositely to those ot the companion bar, one of said projections on one bar being engageable, at selected ifi times, by one end of the longer oli said arms to move the member to one operative position, and the corresponding projection of t ie opposite bar -being' engageable, at selected ldd lid

times.1 bv the onnosite end. ot said longer l-' J arm to move the member to its other operative position, and the others of said projections being engageable bv the shorteriof said arms to move the member to neutral position, means for placing said arms in engagement with any selected onesof said projections, and means for actuating the rock-shaft. y

5. In gear-shifting mechanism, the combination with transmission mechanism'having a plurality of gear-shifting elements, each movable between neutral and operative positions on opposite sides of neutral, of a rock-shaft, radial' arms of varying lengths carried thereby and each extending on opposite sides of the rock-shaft, members movable in opposite directions laterally lto the rock-shaft and to positions corre'- sponding to said neutral and operative positionsfor the control of said elements, each of said members embodying interconnected companion bars, disposed on opposite sides of the roeleshaft and longitudinally to their direction of travel, and a plurality of '0- jections onthe adjacent sides of the b:y rs, and each arranged opnositely to those tot the companion bar, one of said. proiections on one bar being engageable, atv selected times, by one end of the longer of said arms to' move the' member to one operative posi/ tion, and the corresponding pro]ection of the-opposite bar being engageable, at selected times, by the opposite end of sa'id longer arm to move the member to its other operative position, and the others of said projections being engageable by the shorter of said arms to move the member to neutral position, said arms and projections being so related that the shorter of said arms will be in a position to move one oit said members to neutral prior to movement by the longer.

of said a'rms of another of said members lto an `operative position, means for placing said arms .in'engagement with any selected ones of said projections, and means for actuating the rock-shaft.

G. In gear-shifting mechanism for motorvehicles, the combination with transmission mechanism having a plurality of gear-shifting elements, each movable between neutral and operative positions on opposite sides of neutral, of a rock-shaft, cams of varying radii carried thereby, yokes movable latorally to the rock-shaft to positions corresponding to said neutral and operative positions for the control nt lsaid elements. and

yokes in the opposite direction, the greater of said cams being adapted toengage and coperate with any selected ones of said parts to move any selected one of said yokes to an operative position, and the smaller of said cams being adapted to engage said parts to move any yoke to neutral position prior to movement of a yke selected to be moved to an operativ: Iipesition, means for actuating the rocleslfaft, and means for placing said cams and any selected ones of said parts in cooperative relation.

-7. In gear-shifting mechanism for mon tor-vehicles, the combination with transmission mechanism having a plurality of gear-shifting elements, each movable between neutral and operative' positions on opposite sides of neutral, of members each movable to opposite points and an inter- Y tral position, said members having parts en- A gageable to move the members in either .direction, a turning element having radial arms of varying lengths engageable With said partSLthellonger of said arms being engageablepwith certain of the said parts of any chosen one of said members 1to move the chosen member to one of its opposite points, and engageable with certain other of said parts to move the chosenv member to its other opposite point, and the shorter of saidradial arms being engageable withv said parts to move any one of said members to its intermediate point prior to the movement of la chosen member: to one of its opposite points, means for actuating the turning element,l and means for placing the radial arms and selected ones of said parts in mutual engagement. y

In testimony whereof I have` hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing wit- 

